The present study is a critical history of the Catholic Church‟s response to HIV and Aids in South Africa, with a special emphasis on KwaZulu-Natal. It attempts to document and reflect on what the church said and did in responding to HIV and Aids between 1984 and 2005. It relies upon both oral and literary sources which were collected between 2006 and 2009. These comprise of oral testimonies of Catholic clerics, lay leaders, and administrators as well as archival sources in the form of correspondence letters, plenary session minutes, magazine articles, and project reports. The study establishes that between 1984 and 1990 the Catholic Church saw Aids as a disease far removed from its sphere yet deserving certain visionary measures. To a larger extent, Aids was ignored. A moral perspective on the Aids disease prevailed throughout the period. However, isolated visionary leaders conducted awareness workshops. Between 1991 and 1999, however, Aids was seen as immediate, a problem closely related to the mission of the Catholic Church. Here Aids was confronted. The predominant theological response was „missiological,‟ expressed through the new pastoral plan, Community Serving Humanity. As a result, the main Aids related activity by the church was the care of PLWHA. Through home-based care and institutionalised care, Catholic local initiatives in responding to the disease mushroomed in the country with the Archdiocese of Durban taking a leading role. Between 2000 and 2005 Aids was seen as imminent in the church, a concept popularised as the „Church has Aids‟. As a result, the period witnessed a concerted effort by the Catholic Church to integrate Aids response into its mainstream activities. In this period, Aids was seen as a human rights issue. Consequently, the Catholic Church endeavoured to address rights to treatment, Aids related stigma, family violence and gender imbalances. „Responsibility in a Time of Aids‟ became a predominant theological concept. The Catholic Church became a pacesetter in care and treatment after securing oversees funding. However, prevention became the church‟s Achilles heel following an unrelenting condom controversy. The availability of large amounts of money and many financial donors led to the NGO-isation of the Catholic Church‟s Aids projects with regard to their identity, activities, and organization. By and large, HIV and Aids had a large impact on the Catholic Church at all levels, both theologically and organizationally. Therefore, the study argues that for the Catholic Church responding to the Aids epidemic was a complex organizational dilemma. On the one hand, the church‟s teachings compelled it to care for the sick with a compassionate love and uphold a naturalist ethical position on sexuality. On the other hand, the Aids disease was associated with what was perceived to be sinful behaviours such as prostitution, homosexuality and heterosexual acts outside marriage. The infected, therefore, were not only „sick‟ but „sinners‟ at the same time. Moreover, the means of HIV prevention advocated by the government and the better part of the society, the use of condoms, was in sharp contrast with the church‟s official teachings. The hierarchy set itself to defend the teachings while majority of the lay leaders and the medical practitioners called for its revision. Generally speaking, the Catholic Church‟s response to the HIV and Aids epidemic in South Africa was entangled by organizational controversies. In spite of warnings by visionary leaders such as Father Ted Rogers and the exemplary leadership of Archbishop Denis Hurley during the mid 1980s, the Catholic organizational focus on HIV and Aids was delayed until 1990. A concern to respond to HIV and Aids in the church increased considerably in the 1990s as attention shifted from the cry for freedom and democracy to the escalating Aids crisis. However, it was during the 2000s that conditions favoured the much needed integrated Aids response. The Aids crisis had become too obvious to ignore given the acute mortality rate. In conclusion the Catholic Church‟s response to HIV and Aids came relatively early with creative and visionary ideas but it was hindered by organizational and theological barriers. The Catholic Church‟s official HIV prevention policy was contradictory and ambiguous. The Catholic Church innovatively used two models, institutionalised care and home-based care, in the treatment and care of PLWHA and Aids orphans, home based care and Aids hospices. The Catholic Church demonstrated an outstanding ability to raise and disburse large amounts of funds, successfully channelling these to service delivery in its response to HIV and Aids. The Catholic Church Aids projects became NGO-ised following the influx of large foreign funds in the years of the 2000s. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

This study explores the history of sex communication and education over a period of fifty years (1950 to the present), in a deep rural area of the Eastern Cape. It describes patterns of sex communication between peers, between siblings, between children and parents and between young people and other non-familial agencies within communities. Communication trends are traced from the period before contraception was introduced, through to the introduction of female birth control methods into the HIV/AIDS era where the focus has been on attempting to introduce condoms. Twelve semi-structured interviews and two four-person focus groups were conducted to gather information on how the participants acquired information about sexuality and their responses to the same. The findings of the present study suggest that the widespread use of injectable contraceptives has had a marked effect on the sexual culture of the community under investigation. It has led to the collapse of the regulatory practices which were previously in place. This in turn has significantly affected the sexual communication and negotiation context. Furthermore, it has had a determining influence on male involvement in sexual reproductive health matters and has created a poor context for the adoption of condoms as a prophylactic. There were no major changes in the sexual communication context within families and within communities in that education has always been limited to instructions to avoid pregnancy. Of note was a culture of collusion between adults and children surrounding sexuality, which absolved the parties involved in addressing sexuality. These factors are understood have mediated response to HIV/AIDS prevention efforts, and need to be taken into consideration in the development of sex communication and education programmes.

HIV/AIDS is an epidemic that is in one way or another affecting humankind and particularly the African continent. Due to its devastating nature, many strategies and interventions are being employed at different levels and by different groups of people to fight it. Evaluation has been a component of these projects, but few have been subjected to systematic monitoring and evaluation that provides a foundation for the development and implementation of further projects. This is partly due to the fact that project implementation and evaluation can be rendered complex by several factors, such as the choice of methodologies, donor satisfaction and the very nature of interventions and evaluations themselves. Taking a situation where the aim of a project and its evaluation is to bring about social change, as is the case with many HIV/AIDS interventions, this study sought to investigate approaches that could be considered meaningful, useful and valuable. In order to carry out the investigation of this study, the approach taken was an in-depth analysis of a few cases (in anticipation of greater achievement of insight), rather than broader survey types of perspectives. The study also concentrated on a review of the literature and on validation of documentary and interview evidence provided by beneficiaries, managerial staff and evaluators of communication-based HIV/AIDS. Results of the study highlighted the fact that community-based factors, such as education, poverty, culture, beliefs, gender, crime and age, influenced social change (with respect to HIV/AIDS) in varying ways and depending on the communities concerned. The different ways in which these factors influenced social change within specific communities were noted to have implications on interventions dealing with them. As such, an in-depth assessment of these different ways with respect to specific groups of people was encouraged in order to have a meaningful, useful and valuable HIV/AIDS intervention. The theory of active participation of targeted communities was also propagated in an HIV/AIDS intervention. It was noted that when active participation is encouraged in a project at both implementation and evaluation, taking the example of an HIV/AIDS project that intended achieving group knowledge acquisition, awareness, attitude change, skills acquisition, effective functioning and sustainability, such participation would contribute to: • Override to a great extent, limitations arising from socio-demographic differences (project locations and gender, language, age and race of implementers, evaluators and beneficiaries), in the attainment of project objectives. • Override to a great extent, limitations arising from differences in forms of evaluation (internal versus external evaluators), in the assessment of project objectives. • Create an enabling environment for higher attainment of project objectives in comparison to a situation where active participation is encouraged only at implementation (and not at evaluation). It was further discovered from this study that when beneficiaries are excluded from participating in the planning, action-planning and result-feedback stages of a project and its evaluation, dissatisfaction is experienced on the part of these beneficiaries as well as missed opportunities for useful contributions. The degree and quality of beneficiary involvement in project implementation and evaluation was seen to generate beneficiary excitement and a general sense of project acceptance: all of which was noted to create an enabling environment for the making of proper choices and decisions. Finally, difficulty in accessing traditional evaluations and people's feeling of shame and ineffectiveness was noted in the work (in the area of collecting data pertaining to traditional evaluation). This pointed to possible compromise of meaningfulness, usefulness and value of traditional evaluations. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

Many studies have been carried out on Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Despite these giant stride (HIV) and (AIDS) have remained a great threat to human existence across the globe. Studies have shown that South Africa has the largest number of people with (HIV) and (AIDS) in Southern Africa. This study examined the factors influencing the implementation of (HIV) and (AIDS) A quantitative research design was adopted in the study. Two hundred and fifty nine subjects were involved in the study (259) this consisted of the University of Fort Hare Alice Campus in Eastern Cape Province. Five hypotheses were generated and tested in the study at 0.05 alpha levels. This study made use of descriptive and hypothesis testing analysis. Descriptive statistics such as the mean, mode, median and the frequency distribution graphs were also used. The study also revealed that there are factors influencing the implementation of HIV/AIDS awareness Programmes at the university of Fort Hare Alice campus F = 9.233, df = 4, 247 and p-value = 0.000, The University of Fort Hare do effectively implement HIV/AIDS policies and programmes. F = 10.765, df = 4, 247 and p-value = 0.000 . There are factors affecting the implementation of HIV/AIDS policies and programmes at university of Fort Hare Alice campus F = 2.207, df = 4, 247 and p-value = 0.069, There are significant difference on the factors affecting the implementation of HIV/AIDS policies and programmes within university Fort Hare Alice campus Chi-square statistic test: = 84.035, df= 16 and p-value = 0.000 (Pearson Chi-square), There are ways to improving the implementation of HIV/AIDS policies and programmes in university of Fort Hare Alice campus. F = 9.233, df = 4, 247 and p-value = 0.000, However, this study recommended that there is need to review the existing policy on (HIV) and (AIDS), the incorporation of (HIV) and (AIDS) awareness programme in the first year curriculum.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Development Studies, 2017 / HIV/AIDS is a social epidemic that continues to impact the lives of countless young people in Southern Africa and possibly poses one of the biggest threats to adolescent health and sexuality; and is one of the main challenges faced by youth in their transition to adulthood. However, despite the fifteenth year running of the South African government’s HIV/AIDS programme, prevalence rates continue to increase annually pointing to disjuncture between government intervention and the causal mechanisms involved in the spread of HIV/AIDS. Furthermore, literature on men’s sexuality in Southern Africa remains embedded within a ‘predatory masculinity and female vulnerability’ paradigm which results in a gendered analysis of HIV/AIDS and a side-lining of the male perspective which then places young men at a high risk of HIV infection. Therefore, in an attempt to understand the disconnect between literature and high prevalence rates; and to contribute to a better understanding of men’s health and sexuality, a qualitative study using focus group discussions and in-depth interviews was conducted amongst young black heterosexual men (19- 25 years old) to discover the factors that determine condom use among young men living in an RDP housing settlement in Daveyton on the East Rand of Johannesburg. The research findings show that condom use in the sample is predicated upon the young black heterosexual men’s definition of masculinity, the nature of the sexual relationship and sexual partner, and – to a lesser extent - the social accessibility of the condom. As they move from adolescence to adulthood, there is a transition of their understanding of masculinity from one characterized by promiscuous sexual behavior where the use of condoms is seen to diminish the degree of one’s masculinity, to a masculinity fostered by responsible sexual behaviour and accompanied by condom use. The study also found that young men expressed a distance from the supposedly hegemonic view of violent masculinity and male dominance in sexual relationships and that the search for love and the ability to provide for one’s partner was what was most valued in young men’s self -conception of masculinity and sexuality. This then negatively impacted condom usage in romantic relationships as such relationships were perceived to contain less risk and it was assumed that they are predicated on trust; positing love as the biggest barrier to condom use. Furthermore, the study found that although condoms are physically and economically accessible, they are not socially accessible due to the stigma attached to sexual activity among adolescents – which results in a barrier to condom usage. Therefore, findings suggest that the government’s condom promotion programmes - based on the tenets of education (on the subject of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases) and physical accessibility of condoms - are largely inconsistent with the factors that determine condom use among young men. This implies that there is a need to develop tailored condom promotion programmes targeted at male sexuality / XL2018

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The human immune deficiency virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) have already reached a magnitude in Southern Africa which can hardly be addressed by the existing structures. HIV counselling is considered to be an important preventative and supportive strategy in the battle against HIV. In recent years therefore, urgent attempts have been made to provide HIV/AIDS counselling services throughout South Africa. The researcher had a firsthand experience of such an attempt as manager of HIV counselling services for a NGO working in a peri-urban community. She realised that although the ideal outcome and aims of HIV counselling have been widely documented, very little research has been done on the implementation of these principles in health systems with limited resources. It was thought that a meaningful contribution could be made to the development of HIV counselling services in a specific South African community by critically exploring current HIV counselling services in such a community. This exploration entailed the following: • reviewing the literature on HIV counselling; • clarifying the goal of HIV counselling; • clarifying behaviour change as an outcome of HIV counselling; • exploring the influence of the Stellenbosch context on the content and outcome of HIV counselling; and; • exploring to what extent the goals of HIV counselling (as prescribed by international and national literature) are pursued in the Stellenbosch context. The ecological model and an action research method were used to direct this study. The researcher used her position and experience as manager of the HIV counselling services within a non-governmental organisation to access sources of information. Direct and participatory observations were utilised to gather information regarding the implementation of HIV counselling services in the community. The model of Raeburn and Seymour (1979) and specifically the overview phase have been used as a framework to organise the data and to describe the HIV counselling system in the specific community. The researcher concluded that the theoretical principles that were identified as prerequisites for effective HIV counselling services were often irreconcilable with the management skills, context, infrastructure and aims of the primary health services within the district. It was highlighted that a systemic understanding of the impact of the environment should be considered when future models and outcomes are formulated and implemented. Finally, alternative suggestions for the management, the formulation of outcomes and the utilisation of personnel in HIV counselling in this specific community were discussed. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Menslike Immuniteitsgebreksvirus (MIV) en Verworwe Immuniteitsgebreksindroom (Vigs) in Suider-Afrika het reeds 'n omvang bereik wat beswaarlik deur die bestaande strukture aangespreek kan word. MIV-berading word beskou as 'n belangrike voorkomende en ondersteunende strategie in die stryd teen MIV. In die laaste paar jaar is dringende pogings dus aangewend om MIV-beradingsdienste in die hele Suid Afrika beskikbaar te stel. Die navorser het eerstehandse ervaring gehad van hierdie inisiatief as bestuurder van MIV -beradingsdienste vir 'n nie-regeringsorganisasie wat werksaam is in 'n semilandelike gemeenskap. Alhoewel die ideale uitkoms en doel van MIV -berading wyd gedokumenteer is, het sy besef dat baie min navorsing gedoen is oor die implementering van hierdie beginsels in gesondheidsisteme met beperkte bronne. Daar is geredeneer dat 'n betekenisvolle bydrae gemaak kan word tot die ontwikkeling van MIV -beradingsdienste binne 'n spesifike Suid-Afrikaanse gemeenskap deur die huidige MIV -beradingsdienste in so 'n gemeenskap krities te verken. Hierdie verkenning het die volgende behels : • literatuur oor MIV -berading te bestudeer; • MIV-berading se doelwitte te verhelder; • gedragsverandering as uitkoms van MIV -berading te verhelder; • te eksploreer hoe die Stellenbosch konteks die inhoud en uitkoms van MIV -berading beïnvloed; en • te eksploreer tot watter mate die doelwitte van MIV -berading ( soos voorgeskryf deur internasionale en nasionale literatuur) in die Stellenbosch konteks nagestreefword. Die ekologiese model en 'n aksienavorsingsmetode is gebruik om die ondersoek te rig. Die navorser het haar posisie en ervaring as bestuurder van MIV -beradingsdienste binne 'n nie-regeringsorganisasie gebruik om toegang te verkry tot inligting. Direkte en deelnemende waarneming is gebruik om inligting in te samel rakende die implementering van MIV -beradingsdienste in die gemeenskap. Die model van Raeburn en Seymour ( 1979) en spesifiek die oorsigfase is gebruik as 'n raamwerk om data te organiseer en die MIV -beradingsisteem in die spesifieke gemeenskap te beskryf. Die navorser het tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat die teoretiese beginsels wat geïdentifiseer is as essensiële voorvereistes vir effektiewe MIV -beradingsdienste in soveelopsigte onversoenbaar is met die bestuursvaardighede, konteks, infrastruktuur en doelwitte wat binne die spesifieke primêre gesondheidsdienste geld. Dit is beklemtoon dat In sistemiese verstaan van die invloed van die omgewing en die inagneming van die sisteem belangrik is wanneer toekomstige doelwitte geformuleer en modelle geïmplementeer word. Alternatiewe voorstelle vir die bestuur van beradingsdienste, die formulering van uitkomsdoelwitte en die benutting van personeel in hierdie dienste is ten slotte bespreek.

Thesis (M.A.(Social Work)) --University of Limpopo, 2006 / The problem of alcohol and other drugs abuse as well as HIV/AIDS exists globally. This problem does not, spare any institution. It occurs even in primary schools. It cuts across the colour, creed, age and ethnicity lines. The high rate of infection and death of youth in South Africa has devastating consequences, which in turn has led to a destruction of individuals, families and communities. In other words, HIV/AIDS poses a serious threat to the health and welfare of South Africans. Heightened concern about the damage brought by alcohol and other drugs as well as HIV/AIDS has led researchers, educators, social service providers and health service providers to develop an array of diversified programmes to discourage the youth from engaging in unprotected sex and abusing drugs and alcohol. However the problems persist despite measures suggested in a plethora of research studies, reports and inquiries that have been mounted towards alleviating them. An investigation of knowledge on HIV/AIDS and substance abuse was conducted among Grade 6 & 7 learners from three different primary schools in Sefateng Village, Motsepe, Bogalatladi; and Mafise. The ages of respondents ranged from 12 to 16 years of age. The findings in the study shows that primary school learners indulge in sexual activities and use of substances from as early as 12 years of age.

Thesis (M.A. (Research Psychology)) --University of Limpopo, 2010 / This study measures the relationship between the AIDS risk reduction model (ARRM) variables associated with HIV related risk behaviours on learners from a South African rural community. A cross-sectional study was conducted using 308 learners in a Limpopo rural high school to identify HIV risk behaviours. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression to test the usefulness of ARRM variables in predicting sexual risk. Sexual risk was measured as; (a) vaginal sex without a condom, (b) anal sex without a condom (c) number of sexual partners in the last twelve months and (d) time taken before having sex with a new partner. Two of the ARRM variables, that is perceived susceptibility and sexual response efficacy, were found to be the most important predictors of HIV related risk behaviours. There is an argent need for effective preventive activities in rural areas, especially through school-based interventions. Key words: ARRM HIV HIV prevention Risk behaviors

Thesis (MPH.) --University of Limpopo, 2013 / Setting: The study was undertaken in St Rita’s Hospital, a district hospital for healthin Makhuduthamaga Municipality, Sekhukhune District, Limpopo Province. The purpose of the study was to describe client experiences of HIV-positive post-disclosure tosexual partners at St Rita’s Hospital, Limpopo Province. A qualitative, descriptive and phenomenological design was used. Purposive sampling was used to select 15 HIV- positive clients to participate in the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted for data collection until saturation was reached. Data analysis was done using Techs open-coding method. Research findings: The study found that most of the clients were shocked and worried after testing HIV-positive. Participants whose sexual partners were aware that they were sick, indicated their wish to test and to immediately disclose their HIV-positive status. The study identified that some women found it difficult to disclose their HIV-positive status to sexual partners and continued to have unprotected sex in spite of ongoing counselling and support provided at the clinic. Some women participants who disclosed to sexual partners were accepted and some were rejected by sexual partners. Some women who disclosed their HIV-positive status to sexual partners were unable to motivate sexual partners to be counselled together and have mutual disclosure. These participants therefore continued to have unprotected sex with sexual partners and some became pregnant as sexual partners indicated that they tested HIV-negative elsewhere and were not keen to use condoms. Female participants did not indicate the use of female condoms as part of their responsibility to prevent transmission of HIV. Implications, recommendations and conclusions: The barriers which female participants face to disclose their HIV-positive status to sexual partners and not being able to insist on the use condoms may contribute to a high rate of HIV transmission and disease incidence. There should be establishment of consortiums at community level to provide quality support and follow up to clients who face challenges or fear to disclose their HIV-positive status to sexual partners. KEYWORDS • Clients’ experiences • Disclosure • Experiences, • Sexual partner • HIV-positive

Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2006 / The research aimed at exploring and describing the perceptions of the refugees at Humulani village in the Ba-Phalaborwa municipality about HIV and AIDS. The objectives including determining the gender perceptions about HIV and AIDS and also providing recommendations for ways to increase the refugees’ understanding of HIV and AIDS. The approach used for the research was a quantitative approach. The target population of the study was all the refugees at Humulani village. The sample was comprised of both males (78) and females (122) who participated by completing questionnaires. The sample of the refugees consisted of different ethnic groups from Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana and Zimbabwe. The questionnaires consisted of three sections, section A, B and C. The findings of the study revealed that the participants had low levels of knowledge regarding HIV and AIDS which could be attributed to their possession of false myths about HIV and AIDS. The outline of the dissertation was as follows: Chapter 1 introduced the study and discussed the research problems, aim of the study, objectives of the study, research question, significance of the study, motivation of the study and definition of concepts. Chapter 2 discussed the literature review conducted on the refugees’ perceptions of HIV and AIDS. Chapters 3 discussed the research methodology of the study and describe the research design population, sample, data -collection instrument, limitation of the study and ethical considerations adhered to during and after collecting data. Chapter 4 discussed the data analysis and interpretation with reference to literature review.In chapter 5 the evaluation of the study, objectives, conclusions, recommendations and suggestions for further research were presented. Based on the findings it was recommended that the health Profession’s awareness campaigns should be strengthened and designed to reach refugees by taking into account the cultural contexts of the refugees